I was 7 months pregnant and lying in bed the night of January 14, 2015 when all of a sudden I felt what I describe as a small explosion in my right lower abdomen. I had felt this in a much smaller scale every time I had what I thought were heartburn episodes due to pregnancy . I instantly ran to the bathroom and began getting sick. I drank water and Pedialyte to try and rehydrate myself. I had been to the hospital twice in the last few weeks on suspicion of dehydration (my major complaints being back pain and heartburn) and I refused to go again....more

I’m not sure why we are played the cards we are played. Not sure why some families have 10 healthy kids, while others are unable to have kids, or have kids born unhealthy. I’m not sure why I was able to bring my baby home from the hospital, while others don’t get to. I’m not going to say our experience with Brock was any harder or easier than the next. But it is ours. An experience that belongs to Ryan, Brock, and me. It is a part of who we are and what makes us, us.This is Brock....more

A little over a year ago we were pregnant with our second daughter. About 31weeks pregnant. I noticed so much swelling in my feet and legs, so much so that my feet would be purple by the end of the day. Thinking to myself, "It must be because your on your feet all day." I carried on with life anticipating my last 9 weeks of pregnancy. ...more

Labor of Love Pt. 2 ....I don't think I was prepared for the helpless feeling that overcomes a parent when you see your little one struggling. As I sat up and watched the team of NICU doctors and nurses I was completely unaware of the alarms and buzzers going off....more

This is the first in a two-part feature on jaundice. In this post, I'll tell you Baby Boy #4's jaundice story, and in the next post I'll address jaundice from a more clinical perspective. Now that Baby Boy has been named, we'll call him Y....more

I've experienced nothing more helplessly frightening than giving birth to premature infants. I felt like I held my breath from the moment I rolled into the operating room until the moment we drove away from the NICU with three occupied car seats (honestly, I didn't let go of that breath for a long time after that). Trust is something that's normally earned, but with premature birth, trust becomes an instant requirement.
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Having a preemie changes your life. Joys become much more potent as you learn to savor your preemie's tiny victories. Your ability to cope with setbacks grows, and you find new strength within yourself. You become an advocate, a cheerleader, a fighter, and a believer in miracles.
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I didn't believe he was real.I didn't believe he was mine.The photo in the plastic frame, hastily printed and put on my bedside table? I thought my sister had gotten it off the internet.It wasn't supposed to be like this.I didn't believe I'd ever really been pregnant at all.The giant bandage on my still-swollen belly was just another remnant from yet another procedure, in a long string of "just another procedure," in my 7 years of dealing with kidney failure....more

My husband and I were stunned and amazed. In just under 30 minutes, the doctors delivered two little people in this world. We knew that their babies were in good hands.
There was nothing for the us to do other than to sit back and wait while the doctor stitched up the gaping hole in my tummy.
I fought back my tears. I wanted to cry because I was robbed of the experience of having our babies placed upon me to hold for the first time. I was robbed of the experience of being able to count 10 little fingers and 10 little toes twice over....more